Recipes

Charlie
Palmer, Dry Creek Kitchen, Healdsburg, and Aureole, New York and Las
Vegas

Serves 4 as an
entree

For the Provençal Sauce

3 Tbsp olive oil

2 garlic
cloves, peeled and smashed

1 onion
peeled and chopped

½ cup white wine

3 sprigs fresh thyme

1 zucchini,
chopped

1 crook
necked squash, chopped

4 poquillo
peppers (canned), chopped

2 tbsp olive oil

For the Sand Dabs

3 Tbsp cooking
oil

1 knob
unsalted butter

wondra flour

4
Sand Dabs

For the Squash

2 pts.
various baby squash

1
red onion

3 tbsp. extra
virgin olive oil

½ cup black
olives, dry cured and pitted

1 bunch purslane

a few stems of fresh herbs

To Prepare the Provençal SauceHeat the
olive oil in a medium sized sauté pan and add the garlic and onions with
a good pinch of salt. Cook the onions and garlic over medium heat until
they have begun to soften, approximately 5 minutes. Toss them
occasionally to keep them from coloring and reduce the heat if
necessary. Add the thyme sprigs and sauté for a good few seconds to
release its aroma and then add the white wine and reduce by 2/3.

Add the
squashes and cook down slowly for with the onions until all ingredients
are very tender, approximately 15 minutes. Add the poquillo peppers and
just heat through, season with salt and freshly ground white pepper and
then remove from the heat.

Remove and
discard the thyme sprigs, puree the vegetables until very smooth either
in a blender or food processor. Drizzle in the second amount of olive
oil with the puree to smooth it out a bit. Adjust seasoning and reserve
in a saucepot for service or cool down and refrigerate if being made in
advance.

To Prepare Remaining
ingredients and Assemble the Dish

Pre-heat
oven to 325˚.

Wash the
various squashes and cut into appropriate sizes, in half lengthwise with
the zucchini, quarters or halves for the patti pans, etc

Cut the
red onion into ¼ inch thick strips.

Heat the
olive oil in a large sauté pan and add the squashes and onions, season
and give a few tosses to coat all of the vegetables and then transfer to
the oven to roast for 12 minutes, tossing once halfway through the
cooking.

Begin to
cook the Sand Dabs while the vegetables are roasting. Season the
portions with salt and freshly ground pepper, and then dust lightly with
the wondra flour. Heat some cooking oil and a good knob of butter
together in a sauté pan and add the fish over high heat (a good
cast-iron pan works great for this). As soon as the fish begins to
color reduce the heat to medium and add the fresh sprigs of herbs.
Baste the fish with the butter and herbs and as the fish cooks.
Carefully turn the fish with a spatula after 4 minutes of cooking and
continue to cook for an additional 4 minutes. Then remove the fish from
the pan to a warm plate and tent with aluminum foil.

Heat the
sauce through. Remove the pan from the oven and add the olives. Adjust
the seasoning but take care to keep in mind the saltiness that the
olives will impart. Toss in the purslane to lightly wilt.

Ladle the
sauce onto heated entrée plates to form large pools. Mound the
vegetables and purslane into the center of the plates, forming a bed for
the fish to sit on. Top with the fish and serve.